So my story has received quite a few LBL's from the workshop, and I'm ready to start writing the final draft based on the comments I've gotten there.
Except I'm not really sure where to start.
If I go through one LBL at a time, it becomes difficult to combine advice or choose one suggestion over another. I'm thinking I'll have to go through and read one paragraph on all of the LBL's at once, and make the final change on a separate draft, which will take forever, but ensure that I get everything I want out of the LBLs.
Does anyone have a better system?
Are you using MS Word? You can combine the documents; I'm on a friend's computer so I don't have an example, but you can use the functionality in Word to save them all as one document, with all the comments included, so you can see each bit of input on the same screen.
You could also consider making columns in Excel or a notebook where you write down complaints and make a tally for each time it's mentioned by another user; you'll have a visual graph of what people thinks needs the most work. I like to take notes and then open up what I thought was the best, most helpful LBL and edit along those lines.
I like to print a clean copy out, then print the LBLs out and go through the clean copy, marking up the basic errors, and looking for common themes in the LBLs or comments that stand out.
It is a luxury problem. For uni workshops (when folks write LBLs like their grade depends on them) I haven't found a good way around it. I usually go through them one round and make the "obvious" changes, fixing awkward sentences, grammatical issues and plot holes so big I can't see them because I'm in them. After that it's the qualitative round, weighing comments and trying to decide which ones make the most sense. Here at LitReactor I've found the LBLs tend to be less dense (not to say this makes them less useful) and consequently less of a mindfuck for a disorganized writer such as myself. The Teleport Us challenge is an exception, I have no idea how I'm going to deal with that. Although now that I think on it I'm not sure I got any LBLs.
Just go ahead and throw mine out. That should make it much easier. :-D
But seriously, I tend to look at the nuts and bolts stuff that you can't really argue with and change that stuff. Then, I just read everything else, maybe take notes, decide if I agree or disagree or if there's a way to include what that reader is looking for in what I've done. Remember, you're the writer.
Typically, I read through LBLs and then sit on the story for a while, too. After a couple of weeks, see what bits of feedback have stuck and go to work on a new draft. Feedback shouldn't be a guideline for how to make your story better. It should be a something that helps you become a better writer. Absorb and understand the bigger stuff, and then go back to your story as a better writer.
In two or three LBLs, if there's one point about your story that sticks with you and leads to a change for the better in your story and gives you something to apply to future work, you're doing it right.
I'll try some of the things offered.
And I love this site.
Thank you for all the help.
I read through each LBL, ditch the stuff that just seems weird/odd/they didn't get the story (delete the comment in MS word or what not) make a list to address the things they all agree on/misunderstandnigs they all had, and the basics (typos, grammar, etc.).
After that is done, and those comments are deleted/changes made I have a much stronger story most times. With that stronger story it is be easier to address most of the specific remaining things. Often it will have inspired other changes that make those non issues; pargraph four is confussing so I ditch it, so no need to worry about if you did a good job with word choice in sentence two.
Then I read the story carefully to try to smooth out the various infulnces. Edit minon and other tools listed here on the site can help with that. Aren't perfect, but they help.
For reference, I'm finding it easiest to go through each LBL one at a time. I have a fresh copy up, and Track Changes in enabled. My plan is to go through each document, decide how/if to make the change on the draft copy, and if I do, add it via Track Changes. Afterwards, I'm going to go through the draft which should hopefully have all of the possibilities I am considering, and make the changes there.
